Of Witches and Warlocks
by Paige42
Summary: Sequel to Too Much TV... Kate and Ryan engage the help of a secret society called 'The Legacy'.


TITLE: Of Witches and Warlocks (A Fri13th/Poltergeist: The Legacy crossover)   
AUTHOR: Sam (Lestrade42)  
RATING: R  
FEEDBACK: Believe it or not, it's taken me about 2 years to write this, so feedback is most definatly appreciated.  
DISCLAIMER: All established Fri 13th characters (Micki, Ryan, Jack, Johnny, etc....) belong to Frank Mancuso, Jr. Kate Brannigan is a creation of Karen. All established P:TL characters (Derek, Nick, Philip, Rachel, Alex, etc...) belong to Richard Burton Lewis. Special Guest Appearance by characters from 'Due South'.  
  
This story takes place approximately one week after "Too Much TV..."  
  
For Bebop.  
_______________________________________________________________________  
  
October 29  
  
Kate Brannigan flopped face down on her bed. "Jack, give me a break. I'm wasted! We've been doing this all day!"  
  
Jack Marshack lowered his arms. "Aren't you exaggerating a little?"  
  
Kate forced herself to raise her head. "Jack, what time did you wake me up?"  
  
"About seven, I guess."  
  
She nodded. "And what time did we start doing this?"  
  
Jack sighed. "At eight-thirty. What's your point?"  
  
She held out her watch. "Because it's now nine-thirty... at night. We've been doing this for about twelve hours."  
  
Jack frowned. "Oh... oh I'm sorry, Kate. I got so carried away I didn't even realize. We'll take tomorrow off, okay?"  
  
Kate rolled over. "Great. Wonderful. Swell."  
  
Jack laughed as he gathered up his books. "You're picking all of this up rather well, Kate." Kate grunted a response. "Goodnight Kate."  
  
Her hand tried to wave, but it just flopped around, then dropped like a dead weight. Kate danced slowly along the edges of sleep. She could feel herself drifting down, down... and she was almost...  
  
"Hey Houdini!" Ryan Dallion's voice echoed ten times louder than it really was off the walls in Micki's room.  
  
I'll kill him, she thought. "What?"  
  
He jumped on the bed. "How's it going?"  
  
"It would be better if I could get a decent night's sleep. I've almost forgotten what it feels like."  
  
Ryan stroked her hair. "Jack running you ragged again?" Kate nodded sadly. "Could be worse..."  
  
Kate rolled her eyes up at him. "How's that?"  
  
"You could have been possessed by the devil, staked through the heart, saved by God but reduced to a pint sized you with a semi-permanent memory lapse amnesia thing."  
  
Kate blinked. "You win. Your life is definatly more twisted than mine could ever be."  
  
Ryan smiled. "Yeah, but you're working your way up there."  
  
"Oh thanks."  
  
He ruffled her hair and rose to leave. "Goodnight, kid."  
  
" 'Night." Kate let her eyelids close. A dream... Her and Ryan horseback riding on Mars. No noise, no monsters, no...  
  
"Kate!"  
  
... interruptions. Kate forced herself to open her eyes. Micki Foster's head was poking in the door. "Yes?" she managed her vocal cords to call.  
  
"Oh, sorry. I just wanted to know if you wanted anything to eat."  
  
Kate smiled... or got as close as she possibly could to one. "No. Thanks."  
  
"Okay. Sleep well." Thankfully, Micki closed the door as she left.  
  
Kate waited. I know there's one more person living here, she thought. When's he gonna walk in? After a minute, the longest in the history of time, Kate's eyes slowly closed. And she planned to keep them than way...  
  
~~**~~  
  
She ran. 'I must stop him.'  
  
A servant ran past. "He's on the tower. He'll curse us all!" Another servant was close on his heels. He came to a halt in front of her.  
  
"M'lady, he is starting the spell!"  
  
She placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "Matthew, which tower?" Her voice was soft, touched with an Irish accent.  
  
"The East Tower, Lady Heather. Can you stop him?"  
  
Lady Heather tried to smile. "I believe so, Matthew."  
  
"Oh, I believe differently, my lady," a think English voice called.  
  
Matthew spun around. The Master was framed in the doorway. He didn't have to see his Lord's face to know it held that same evil grin that seemed to be burned permanently in place. He stepped in front of his Lady. It was his job to protect her.  
  
"Back away Matthew."  
  
"You must kill me first."  
  
"As you wish." The Master raised his amulet over his head. It started to glow an eerie red-orange. Suddenly a beam of light shot out and hit Matthew in the chest. For a moment he stood stunned. Then Matthew burst into a pile of ash and burnt bone.  
  
"No!" Heather sank to her knees, cradling what she could in her hands. Her cries and the Master's laughed started to mix together. The hallway started to fade.  
  
'No... what's next?" Kate's mind demanded...  
  
~~**~~  
  
Kate slowly became aware of her surroundings. Eyes still closed, she tried to get a handle on what was going on. She could tell there was someone sitting next to her on the bed.  
  
"Kate?" the voice whispered.  
  
I wonder who that is, she thought.  
  
A set of lips gently pressed themselves into the hollow of her neck. Oh, she thought as a smile crept across her face, that's who that is. She forced one eye open. Johnny Ventura's face was leaning over hers.  
  
"Good afternoon."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Johnny handed Kate her watch. "Oh my God! It's after noon!" She jumped out of bed. "I have to meet my family lawyer at one. I'm gonna be so late."  
  
Johnny grabbed her hand as she ran by. "No, you're not. The lawyer called and said he had to re-schedule for three o'clock because his car broke down. So you've got some extra time."  
  
"Oh. Good. Well, I'll get dressed and go over some of the things that Jack showed me yesterday and..."  
  
"Nope," Johnny cut her off, "you won't be doing that either."  
  
Kate turned, looking confused. "I won't?"  
  
"No. You're going to get a shower, get dressed and then we're going to lunch."  
  
"Oh, we are?"  
  
"Yes, and I'm not going to take no for an answer. We're going to meet Mr. Reed there. Hurry up. We have reservations for one-thirty." Johnny quickly smiled and left the room, leaving Kate to wonder what he was up to.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Father Philip Callahan sighed as he wiped the sweat from his brow. His pumpkin patch was ready to be harvested. And just in time for Halloween. He smiled as he watched the leaves fall gently from the trees.  
  
Monsignor Shields hobbled into the back yard. "Philip! You have to hear the news." He reached over to a small radio on the kitchen windowsill and turned the knob.  
  
"... doors. Once again, this is an emergency announcement. Matthew Garrison, the serial killer who murdered twelve children in the Philadelphia area eight years ago escaped from Brown Asylum early this morning. Garrison was being transported to a maximum security asylum when he somehow got out of his restraints and killed two guards. Please, we are asking all residents, be on the look-out. Keep all children indoors, lock your windows and..."  
  
Philip turned off the radio. "It begins."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"But why did you come all the way out here to see me, Mr. Reed?" Kate pushed her soup away from her. The more this lawyer talked, the more nervous she got.   
  
The short Italian man across from her wiped his mouth. "Well Miss Brannigan, I'll come right to the point. Although I would prefer to discuss this matter in private." He eyeballed Johnny.  
  
"Oh. Yeah. Well, I have some things to pick up. I'll come back in, say, half an hour."  
  
"Make it one hour, thank you."  
  
Johnny got up and left, fuming.  
  
"Well Miss Brannigan, you're a very lucky young lady."  
  
"I am?" I'm lucky?! Kate's mind screamed. My family is dead, my best friend was a servant of the devil and my boyfriend hunts cursed objects for a living. You have a funny definition of 'lucky'.   
  
Mr. Reed pulled out a large accordion folder. "You are the sole inheritant of your parents estate."  
  
Duh!, her mind yelled. Kate surpressed a smile.  
  
"It includes a warehouse of antiques your parents kept for their store and a 1996 Lincoln Towncar."   
  
Kate's eyes widened. How could my parent's afford that? She sipped her water.  
  
"Oh, and 4.5 million dollars."  
  
Kate's water went flying across the table. "What!"  
  
Mr. Reed frowned as he wiped water droplets off his glasses. "4.5 million dollars now belongs to you. A small amount of the is from the insurance on the few antiques that were destroyed by the fire. About $68, 000 I believe. Both of you parent's had life insurance polices to the amount of $150, 000 each."  
  
"That still leaves the rest of it. Where'd that come from?"  
  
"Savings, investments and stocks. Your mother came from a rather wealthy family."  
  
Kate remembered her mother always talking about Grandma and Grandpa Baker having loads of money, but she never really though anything of it. She thought mom was just jealous.  
  
Mr. Reed continued. "Your mother was disowned at one point early in your parents marriage, but was brought back into the family shortly before your grandparents death."  
  
"Whoa, hold it. Disowned? My mother? Little miss 'I-never-did-anything-wrong-in-my- whole-life' perfection was disowned?" Why did she never know this? "Why?"  
  
Mr. Reed looked her dead in the eye. "Because of you."  
  
Kate sagged in her chair. "Me?" All those years of screaming matches, all those arguments over money she had heard, all because of me?  
  
"Well, it was you indirectly of course."  
  
"I don't understand."  
  
"She was pregnant with you before she was married."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"You're rich?" Johnny asked.  
  
"Well, no. Just... well off I guess you'd say." Kate shifted in her seat and changed her grip on the steering wheel. She didn't like the idea of having alot of money. People's attitudes changed towards you when they found that out. Plus she was still trying to work out what Mr. Reed had told her. Her mother.. a spoiled little rich girl who decided to rebel. She becomes a die hard party girl and falls for a cute biker guy and gets pregnant. So they run away, get married and six months later had her. Grandma Baker calls her horrible names and banishes her from her fairy-tale home, forcing her to fend for herself. Eight years later, they demand to see her and their grandchildren and take her back into their hearts just in time for them to die about two months apart. Mom gets a ton of stocks and bonds and never once mentions them to either child. Geez, wait till Ryan heard this one. Now who had the more twisted life?  
  
"So," Johnny interrupted her thoughts, "what's next?"  
  
"Well, Mr. Reed told me that the hardware store next to the shop is up for sale. I'm gonna talk to Jack and Micki. Mr. Reed is shipping all the antiques from my parent's warehouse. If I buy the hardware store we can expand the shop, make it a little less crowded. Then, you and Micki could have your rooms back. Ryan and I would move in next door, we knock a hole through the wall and me, Jack and Micki could become partners."  
  
"You've really thought about this, haven't you?"  
  
Kate was staring blankly out the windshield.  
  
"Kate?"  
  
~~**~~  
  
Heather tried to calm the horse. "Whoa!" She snapped the reins and pulled back frantically. No matter how hard she pulled, the horses kept running off the road. They were heading straight for a tree.  
  
Joseph grabbed her arm. "Heather, look out!"  
  
~~**~~  
  
Johnny grabbed her arm. "Kate, look out!"  
  
Kate blinked back into reality just in time to see the tree speeding towards them. It wasn't, however, in time to stop the crash.  
  
The brakes squealed, but forward momentum slammed them into the tree. Wood split, metal and plastic screamed as it smashed inward. Kate slammed in the steering wheel. A white flash blanked out everything...  
  
A voice was whispering in her ears. Kate raised her hand to her forehead. It came way wet and warm. The smell of burnt plastic burned her lungs. A strange coppery taste sat in the back of her throat nearly gagging her. She coughed, blinked and turned to face the voice.  
  
Johnny's hands was on her shoulder. His face was a mass of cuts and running blood. His arm hung limply at his side. The car was caved in around him, his legs were practically encased in what used to be the glove compartment. "Kate." He breathed.  
  
Kate blinked to try and clear her head. It didn't work well. Her vision blurred as she crawled over to him. "Johnny?" She pulled off his seatbelt. A fire was slowly starting to work it's way up the window. "Come on, Johnny!" She wrapped her arms around his waist and gently pulled him up. "Johnny, move your legs. Hurry!" The pain in her head was unbearable, but she fought against it. If they didn't get out of here, they were going to burn to death. She would have plenty of time to pass out after they got out of the car. "Please hurry!"  
  
Johnny shifted and yelped as he pulled on leg free. Kate could see it was cut up pretty badly. "Kate, pull,"  
  
She gripped around his chest and pulled as hard as she could. Black and white spots danced before her eyes. Johnny came free. His window started to crack under the heat of the fire. Kate stepped out of the car, pulling Johnny along. The smell of burning oil assaulted her. Now she knew she was going to pass out.  
  
Johnny pulled himself out and hobbled along side Kate. He could feel her getting weaker. He turned and looked back at Kate's jeep. Suddenly it exploded outward. The sound was deafening. Burnt plastic and metal rained down all around them.   
  
The noise rebounded in Kate's head. She gave into the darkness and dropped to the ground. She felt something give in her wrist, but didn't much care. What was one more broken bone? The grass felt wonderful around her. She could feel herself sinking into it. Someone or something above her was screaming. Her body wanted to answer, but her head told her, "Sleep."  
  
Johnny rolled her over. "Kate? Kate! Oh God, please answer me. Kate!"  
  
~~**~~  
  
"Please answer me. Heather?" Joseph shook her arm again.  
  
"Joseph, leave her."  
  
He turned to greet the angry voice. Matthew strode into the room with a rag and a bowl full of some liquid. "Another of the wizards foul concoctions?" Joseph spat.  
  
"These 'foul concotions' as you call them are the only thing keeping Heather alive. Now please leave while I administer this."  
  
Joseph smirked. "Oh no, dear Matthew. I will be here watching. I know you. You may deny it, but I know you love her. But I am her betrothed. Does that anger you, Matthew? To know that the woman you would give your life to protect will lie with another man?"   
  
Matthew threw down the rag and charged Joseph.  
  
"Enough!" A large, bearded man entered the room leaning heavily on a wooden cane. "Joseph, leave the room. Your fighting is not helping the healing process. I will stay."  
  
Joseph hesitated, then stormed out of the room.   
  
The old wizard shook his head at his young assistant. "You should know better, Matthew, than to let him bait you like that."  
  
Matthew slowly picked up his rag. "I know, Osric. But he makes me so furious."  
  
Osric smiled beneath his hood. "Is it because you know him to be right?"  
  
Matthew's eyes flared for an instant, then his stature crumpled. "Yes. He is right." His voice was barely a whisper.  
  
"She loves you Matthew, but not in a way you would hope. But, have joy to know that you will always be closest to her heart."  
  
~~**~~  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Philip paced around the terminal. The small cell phone in his hand buzzed. Why hadn't they picked up yet? His flight had landed only ten minutes ago but he was already springing into action.  
  
"Hello", the young masculine voiced called.  
  
"Nick? It's Philip. I'm in Chicago. Have you seen the news?"  
  
"Yeah. Your guy got out this morning. How's the kid?"  
  
Philip sighed. "I'm going to get her now. Tell Derek to have everything ready. If all goes well, we should be joining you tomorrow afternoon."  
  
"All right. I just hope this kid is as good as Derek says she is." Nick abruptly hung up.  
  
"So do I."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan sneezed for the fourth time in a row. "Oh Jack, do we have to do this now?" Jack had forced Ryan out from in front of the TV to help him clean the vault.  
  
Jack stood up, dust bunnies hanging from his eyebrows. "Well Ryan, we are running out of room."  
  
Ryan brushed himself off. "You seem to say that about every other week." The bells to the front of the store jangled loudly. "Salvation," Ryan whispered. "Be right there!" He ran up the stairs and was shocked at the sight before him. A man in a Mountie's uniform and a little guy that looked like he was homeless were standing on the shop floor.  
  
"I don't like this place, Frasier. It gives me the creeps."  
  
The Mountie took off his hat. "Well, now that you mention it, Rya, it does seem to give off a rather supernatural presence."   
  
Ryan cleared his throat. "Can I help you gentlemen?"  
  
The shorter man pulled out a badge. "Detective Stan.. uh, Ray... Ray Vecchio, Chicago PD."  
  
Ryan raised an eyebrow. "And you are?"  
  
The Mountie smiled. "Constable Benton Frasier, Royal Canadian Mounted Police. I first came to Chicago..."  
  
The detective elbowed him in the ribs. "Frasier, he really doesn't need to know that."  
  
"Understood."  
  
Ryan thought they acted more like a comedy team than police. "What can I do for you," Ryan asked, trying to keep a straight face.  
  
"We're looking for Miss Kathleen Brannigan."  
  
The smile dropped from Ryan's face. "What did she do?"  
  
Constable Frasier stepped forward. "Oh no, it's not anything she has done, Mister...?"  
  
"Ryan Dallion."  
  
"Mr. Dallion, we really must see her."  
  
"She's not here. She's meeting with her family lawyer. Look, what's going on?"  
  
Detective Vecchio exchanged looks with the Mountie. "Are you family?"  
  
"I'm as close as your gonna get. She doesn't have any family left. They're dead. I'm her best friend."  
  
Detective Vecchio shook his head. The Mountie scratched his forehead, uneasy. "Well, the truth of the matter is, Mr. Dallion, we need to put her under protective custody."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"A man named Matthew Garrison escaped from a mental institution this morning. And we think he may try and come find her."  
  
Ryan's legs nearly gave out from under him. He jumped when the detective's cell phone rang.  
  
"Vecchio." He paused. "You gotta be kidding me, Franny. Okay, we'll be right there." He slapped the phone shut. "Mr. Dallion, you'll have to come with us. It seems Ms. Brannigan was just in a car accident."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
~~**~~  
  
Heather wiped away the tears streaming from her eyes. "You bastard!"  
  
Lord Nathaniel laughed as he ran out towards the balcony...  
  
And time stopped...  
  
All was blackness...  
  
Kate walked around slowlyTwas only one light in the room coming from the ceiling. A dark figure detached itself from the wall.  
  
"Well, Kathleen. Are you ready to fulfill your destiny?"  
  
She recognized him as Lord Nathaniel, the man from her dream.   
  
"What is this, 'Star Wars'?"  
  
"Not really, my dear. We're going to play a little game. It's called Reincarnation. And here's player number one."  
  
With a flash of blue light, a glass case appeared in the corner of the room. There was a small girl in it.  
  
Funny, Kate thought, she looks familiar.  
  
She started to pound on the glass. "Help me! Please, release me!"  
  
Realization slowly crossed Kate's face. "Oh my God. It's... it's me." She looked almost exactly like Kate with the exception of her hair. Where as Kate's was short and blonde, this girls was long and deep brown.  
  
"Now now, Heather. You're scaring the young lady. Oh, here comes player number two."  
  
Another light flashed from the ceiling. A man strode out, smug and smiling.   
  
"Kathleen, I believe you've meet him already. Matthew Garrison, meet my wife."  
  
Garrison smiled at Kate. "Oh, I've missed you Kathy." He slowly walked towards her.  
  
"No. This isn't real. You're locked away. This is just a dream!" Kate backed into the glass case.   
  
Lord Nathaniel wrapped his arms around Garrison's neck. "Notice the resemblance?"  
  
It was true. They were tall and heavy, rough faced and heavy lidded. The only difference was Lord Nathaniel had a beard. They both held the same evil smile, the same horrid glint in their eyes.  
  
A soft voice whispered to her. "Let me out of here, please!"  
  
Garrison spun around and faced Lord Nathaniel. "And now for our final trick of the show! Two people become one!"   
  
Lord Nathaniel touched Garrison's outstretched hand. A spark of purple light erupted from their touch. Lord Nathaniel started to melt into Garrison's body.  
  
Heather pounded in the glass behind her. "You must let me out! Or else he will bring down a curse of evil upon the world!"  
  
Kate tore her eyes away from Garrison's magic act. "Okay, cover your head." Heather curled herself into a ball. Kate took a deep breath and kicked the glass. Nothing. She tried again. Not even a crack.  
  
Garrison/Lord Nathaniel laughed. "And I was told to fear your abilities, child!"  
  
Kate forced her anger down. She closed her eyes and raised her arms like Jack had showed her. "By Nemesis' hand I pray, release!" The glass around Heather started to crack.  
  
"No!" Lord Nathaniel disappeared completely into Garrison's body.  
  
"Release!" The glass collapsed.  
  
Heather's body transformed into a purple cloud. "Thank you. I shall come to you again when you need me. Look for me in a symbol of faith and love." Her voice and the cloud faded into the light.  
  
Garrison grabbed Kate by the neck and slowly began to squeeze. "No matter where you go, no matter where you try to hide, I'll find you. And I will kill you!" He threw her to the ground.  
  
~~**~~  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
October 30  
  
Kate slowly came back to her own world. She could hear voices. She could feel a grip on her right hand. She cracked open her eyes. Her head felt like a lead weight. She saw Ryan holding her hand, Micki pacing at the foot of her bed and Jack was talking to... a Mountie? I must still be dreaming, she thought.  
  
"Actually Mr. Marshack, I do have a fundamental knowledge of Inuit religions. For example; to the Inuit people Sila, a supremely powerful spirit, is the divine ruler of the world. From his domain far above the earth, he rules the souls of men and beasts and controls the sea and elements- the wind, snow, rain- around which..."  
  
"Hey," Ryan cut him off, "she's waking up."  
  
The Mountie left the room. The three friends circled the bed. Three..  
  
Kate tried to sit up. "Where's Johnny? Is he all right?"  
  
Ryan pushed her back down. "He's fine. He has a dislocated shoulder and a few minor cuts. He's talking to the police right now. You got the worst end of it. You've got a severe concussion, three stitches in your forehead and a fractured wrist. You were out since they brought you in yesterday. How do you feel?"  
  
Kate licked her lips. "Did I really see a Mountie talking to Jack?"  
  
"Yes Kate," Jack said. "He's helping the police. Don't' ask. It's a long story"  
  
The Mountie walked in, clearing his throat. "Mr. Marshack, would you and your friends mind stepping outside for a minute?"  
  
Jack and Micki rounded the bed and walked out the door. Ryan brushed Kate's hair away from her face. "I'll be back soon."  
  
"Thanks," Kate whispered.  
  
"Anytime." He squeezed her hand and followed them out. The Mountie and another man led Johnny into the room.  
  
"Johnny!"  
  
Johnny ran to the bed. "Kate. I was so worried." He sat down and gently kissed her uninjured hand.  
  
Kate looked past him. "And you two are?"  
  
"Constable Benton Frasier, Royal Canadian Mounted Police. This is Detective Ray Vecchio of the Chicago Police Department."  
  
"No he's not."  
  
Constable Frasier's eyes widened and his partner nearly fell over. "Er.. excuse me?"  
  
Kate squirmed and tried to make herself comfortable. "I met a guy who said he was Detective Ray Vecchio of the Chicago PD over a month ago in Philadelphia and you look nothing like him."  
  
"Ah, yeah. Well,... Frasier?"  
  
The Mountie tried to bail out his flailing partner. "Ah, it's an internal police matter. Let's just say, for arguments sake, that he is the real Ray Vecchio... just for now. It's a very complicated story."  
  
"That's okay. I believe you. Besides, I know why you're here. Garrison got out of the asylum, right?"  
  
They were dumbstruck. Constable Frasier spoke first. "Ah, yes. We're here for police protection until you leave the hospital."  
  
"Wonderful. My childhood all over again." Kate sighed.  
  
"Beg your pardon?"  
  
"Nothing, Constable. Just thinking out loud."  
  
Johnny cleared his throat. "Guys, could you give us a minute?"  
  
"Oh, sure." Vecchio nudged his partner out the door.  
  
Johnny sighed as the door closed. "I told them you swerved to avoid hitting a dog."  
  
"Johnny, I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened. I just... I don't know how to describe it. I've been having these dreams about a girl who looks like me. But she's a Lady in medieval England. She knows magic and she's got this horrible husband and..." She gasped as a sudden thought hit her.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Oh my God. I just realized... Matthew and Joseph. They look like you and Ryan! And Garrison. He's the reincarnation of Lord Nathaniel. It's happening all over again!"  
  
Johnny glanced worriedly at her. Was this something to do with the head trauma? "What's happening all over again? What are you talking about?"  
  
"Don't you understand? Whatever happened back then, it's going to happen again!" Kate fell back, drained.  
  
"Do you know what happened?"  
  
"No. I haven't dreamt it yet. But I know it doesn't have a happy ending. God, I can't imagine what Heather must have gone through."  
  
Johnny's head snapped up. "What did you say?"  
  
"Heather. The girl from my dream that looks like me. She must have been miserable." Kate glanced at Johnny. "Are you okay? You're pale as a sheet."  
  
Johnny hastily put a smile on his face. "No, I'm fine. Look, why don't you rest? I'll be back to check on you soon." He leaned over and gently kissed her forehead. "It'll be okay."  
  
Kate smiled, but she knew he was wrong.  
  
Johnny closed the door. Ryan's words, less than a month old, came ringing in his ears:  
  
***  
  
"He never moved a muscle. He just said 'Someday you'll be mine, Heather.' And then he pulled it out of his hand and smiled back at her."   
  
"Wait a minute. Heather? Where did that come from?"   
  
"I told you he believed they were linked in a past life. Maybe Heather is what he thinks her name was back then. I wouldn't put too much faith in that. I mean, he was crazy."   
  
***  
  
"Oh God." Johnny ran to find the others.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Micki frowned at her coffee. "I swear I can almost taste the antiseptic in this."  
  
Ryan absently nodded.  
  
Johnny paced frantically around the cafeteria. "How long does she have to stay here?"  
  
Micki tried one more sip, then threw it away. "She can leave tomorrow morning."  
  
"To the left, Father," a voice called from the hallway.  
  
A tall, slightly aging priest came rushing into the room. "Ryan?"  
  
Ryan looked up from the table. "Father Callahan? What are you doing here?"  
  
He sighed and tried to catch his breath. "First, who are your friends?"  
  
"Oh, this is Johnny Ventura and my cousin Micki Foster. They work with me."  
  
Micki smiled. "We've met."  
  
Philip smiled as he recognized her. "Ah yes, I remember. Well, I suppose you've heard that Matthew Garrison escaped. That's why I'm here."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
~~**~~  
  
Heather dove at his back with all her might. "I'll not let you bring your evil into the world!"  
  
Nathaniel's laughter was swept away by the storm raging above. The remains of servants and soldiers who tired to stop him littered the tower. "And will you stop me, child? You and your pitiful powers can do nothing! You have lost everything; your lover, your servant, your teacher... all gone! You have nothing left! So, as my final gift to you, I shall put you out your misery!" Nathaniel grabbed Heather from behind and tried to carry her to the edge of the tower.  
  
Heather pulled out the sword Osric had given her. It was silver, encrusted with purple jewels and a small cross. She dug her nails in the back of Nathaniel's hand. Screaming, he dropped her instantly. Heather scurried over to the ledge. She positioned the tip of the sword directly on her stomach. "God forgive me," she whispered. The butt end of the hilt was inches away from the turret wall.   
  
Nathaniel rushed back at her. When she felt his grip upon her, she let herself fall forward. The hilt crashed against the stone. The sword pierced Heather's skin quickly, but she felt no pain. Nathaniel screamed as the sword ripped into his flesh.  
  
She smiled. "I curse your soul, Nathaniel. It shall live in torment for twenty-eight generations. Then we shall do battle again. I have seen it."  
  
Nathaniel pulled his body from the sword. Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. "I shall have my revenge!" He stumbled over to the ledge and grabbed Heather's arm. "I'll take you with me!" Nathaniel left himself fall, pulling Heather along with him as they plummeted off the tower.  
  
As she fell, Osric's voice echoed through her head. "You shall have your second chance, child. Your line shall produce one who can defeat this evil. And she shall be called..."  
  
~~**~~  
  
"Kate?!" Ryan yelled.  
  
"Wait a minute," Johnny jumped into the argument. "So what your telling me is that you and your friends want to hide Kate out on an island somewhere in California because it has something to do with a research project and you need her help. But we all know that that's not true. Now, why are you really taking her?"  
  
Father Callahan sighed. "I'll discuss it only with Ryan."  
  
"Over my dead..." A scream cut Johnny off. "Kate!" Ryan, Johnny and Philip ran off to her room.  
  
"I'm all right," her voice was whispering.   
  
A nurse was checking her pulse. "Are you sure?"  
  
"Yeah, it was just a dream. Philip? Is that you?"  
  
Philip smiled as he want to her side. "How do you feel?"  
  
"Fine. What are you doing here?"  
  
"I need to talk to you and Ryan. Alone."  
  
Johnny glared at Philip and stormed out of the room, the nurse close behind. "This is the second time in twenty-four I've been told to leave a room."  
  
Philip motioned for Ryan to sit down. "All right you two, we have alot to discuss."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Rachel Corrigan and Alex Moreau stepped quickly down the stairs. "So, Alex. Nick is going to drive us to the airport and pick up Philip and the two kids?"  
  
Alex dropped her bag at the door. "Right. Then the rest of the people left at the shop will stay at the Chicago house. Then the two of us and a few people from the House will stay in the shop to look out for Mr. Garrison."  
  
"He won't go there," Derek Rayne said as he strolled in the room. "He knows what she's doing all the time. He'll come here."  
  
Rachel snickered. "They why are we going there?"  
  
"To make sure that he doesn't exact his revenge on Mr. Marshack and his friends."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate sighed. "But you're sure that they'll be safe?"  
  
Philip paced in front of the door. "Absolutely. Jack has gone to distract the police so we can sneak you out. Micki should be here in a few minutes with your and Ryan's suitcases."  
  
Kate rose carefully out of the bed. "So you and the guys at the Legacy really think that this reincarnation thing is true?"  
  
"Don't you?"  
  
"I guess. Do you think I could see Johnny before we go?"  
  
"Sure." Philip closed the door behind him.  
  
Kate finally had a few minutes to herself to think. Did she really want to follow in her ancestors footsteps, getting stabbed and thrown off a tower? Would she have to watch her best friend get turned into a pile of ashes and lose her boyfriend? No way, she thought. I'm a modern twenty-first century woman with an Art degree and an elementary education in magic. I can do anything! Well, with the exception of maybe tying my own shoes at the moment. Kate absently scratched at the air cast on her wrist.  
  
Johnny poked his head on. "Hey. I brought you your clothes. Well, Ryan's clothes. You have to be inconspicuous."  
  
"A pair of jeans, a flannel and a baseball hat are inconspicuous?"  
  
"Just get it on."  
  
Kate smiled at him.  
  
"What?"  
  
She spun her finger around in a circle, the international sign of 'Turn Around'.  
  
"Oh." Johnny turned to face the wall. "So, you're really gonna do this?"  
  
Kate quickly started to get changed. "I have to. God knows what will happened if I don't."  
  
"Did you find out what happened to Heather?"  
  
"She dies."  
  
Johnny spun around. "What!"  
  
"Johnny!"  
  
He spun back around. "Sorry. How does she die?"  
  
Kate pulled the shirt on and started to brush her hair. "Uh... she ... stabs herself with a sword and then falls off a tower." Johnny's shoulders sagged. Kate walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around her waist. "I'll be fine. Don't worry. Philip's friends do this sort of thing all the time. Or, so he says."  
  
Johnny turned to her, brushing his hands along her cheeks. "I hope so." He leaned down and kissed her gently. He couldn't stand it. They had just started to get really close. And now there was the possibility that he might lose her forever. He could now understand why Ryan had been so drawn to her in the first place and why he panicked when Kate's parents told her she had to come home.   
  
He pulled away slowly. "I have something for you. I picked it up yesterday while you were talking to the lawyer." Johnny pulled out a small velvet pouch from his pocket and poured the contents into Kate's hand. It was a silver cross encrusted with purple jewels.  
  
"Oh, Johnny. It's beautiful. I love it." She started to slip the chain around her neck. Johnny helped her clasp it. "Thank you." She brought her mouth to his again. She didn't want to leave. They must have the strangest relationship in history, she thought. They met chasing a cursed object and bonded over broken bones and bruises. And then they started dating while running away from monsters in a cursed television. Oh well.  
  
Philip slipped in with Ryan behind him. "Kate, it's time to go. The flight leaves in an hour."  
  
Kate pulled slowly away and reached for her bag.  
  
Johnny turned to Ryan. "You take care of her."  
  
"I always have."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek Rayne rubbed his eyes. He'd been staring at the vid-link screen for over two hours preparing himself for Ms. Brannigan's arrival. Her family had a horrible ancestry. Many people had died mysteriously over the years. And it had always been brutal. He looked up again at the grim face starring down at him.   
  
Lord Nathaniel. Born in 1357 and died in 1399. He was a black sorcerer and sadist, hated and loathed by his servants and even by his fellow countrymen. Married soon before his death to a young orphan girl. Heather, born in 1378 and died in 1399. Her parent's had been taken by the Black Death. Soon after she was found by Osric, the village elder. She was raised with a high respect for life, a pure soul who became well versed in magic.   
  
He read on about Heather's life and how she had met Lord Nathaniel and all the horror he had caused her. Six months of misery go by then, on Halloween night in 1399, they kill each other. Heather, with her last breath, curses Nathaniel's soul to twenty-eight generations of imprisonment and torment. That worked out to be approximately five hundred and sixty years.  
  
Derek looked down at the folder of papers in his hand. She was good, he thought to himself. Exactly five hundred and sixty years to the day later, Matthew Garrison is born. Twenty-one years later, Kate was born to Henry and Karen (Baker) Brannigan.   
  
Kate's life was pretty uneventful at first. At age five, her brother Jamie was born. At age twelve she met Ryan Dallion. Derek sighed. He was another story altogether. At age thirteen her brother was brutally murdered by Matthew Garrison. The rest was history. But Derek was more interested in he past. Did she know? And if she didn't, how could he tell her? And would that knowledge send her over the edge?  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate sighed and shifted in her seat again. Because of the concussion she wasn't allowed to sleep for a few more hours yet. Philip sat next to her idly flipping through a leather-bound book. Ryan was siting across from her, asleep. Kate frowned and shifted in her seat again. Something fuzzy bumped against her leg. It was a small stuffed kitten. As Kate's fingers brushed against it, her head snapped back...  
  
... Crying, yelling... a glass hits the ground... "I just bought that!"... "Mommy! Ow! My arm!"... Crying... "I'm sorry."... The cat...  
  
"Kate? Kate!" Philip was shaking her.  
  
"Huh?" Kate blinked. The cat was still in her hand.  
  
"May I have Princess back, please?" A little girl in pig-tails was standing in the aisle, a cast around her arm.  
  
"Sure. Sorry."  
  
The little girl smiled as she took the cat back and ran down the aisle to her seat.  
  
"Kate, what happened?"  
  
"Her mother broke her arm because she knocked a glass off the table."  
  
Philip eyed her strangely. "How do you know that?"  
  
"I saw it when I touched the cat. Her mother gave it to her as an apology." Kate absently rubbed at her forehead. "Now I have a headache."  
  
A shadow crossed Philip's face.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nick Boyle sighed and glanced at his watch again. Philip and the kids were late. He frowned at the bag of stale potato chips in his hand. Tossing them in the nearest trash can, he made his way to the gift shop. There was only one other customer in the store, a young blond girl with a cast on her wrist struggling with a bottle of aspirin.  
  
"Need a hand?"  
  
The blonde glared at him for a second, sighed, then handed him the bottle. "Thanks," she mumbled. "I can't even tie my own shoes."  
  
Nick popped open the cap. "Been there. Here ya go."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"The name's Nick."  
  
"Kate."  
  
Nick grinned, putting on his best 'Hey, I'm single' look. "You gonna be in town long?"  
  
Kate smiled with her best 'Beat it, I'm taken' look. "Not if I can help it. Nice meeting you." She walked out.  
  
Nick stood dumbstruck for a second, then laughed to himself.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Philip tapped his watch. "Nick's late. And where's Kate?"  
  
Ryan pointed down the hall. "Her she comes."  
  
Philip looked past Ryan. "And here comes Nick." Each walked past each other to talk to their counterparts.  
  
"What kept ya?"  
  
"Some guy tried to pick me up in the gift shop."  
  
Philip was walking over with a brown haired man in tow. "I'll start the introductions. Kate, this is..."  
  
Kate rolled her eyes. "Oh good lord."  
  
Nick's jaw dropped. "You're that Kate?"  
  
Philip was stunned. "You two know each other."  
  
"He's the nice man who opened my aspirin for me."  
  
Nick smiled smugly as he picked up her bag. "Looks like we will be having dinner together."  
  
Kate smiled weakly. "Be still my beating heart."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nick, Ryan and Philip kept up a steady stream of conversation but Kate simply stared out the window. She hadn't tried to even pay attention. She heard snips of conversations. Nick was an ex-Navy SEAL. They were heading to a mansion that was owned by 'The Legacy'. The Legacy was a group of men and women who worked to fight evil in all it's forms, kinda like the shop crew but on a much larger scale. This house was run by Derek Rayne. It was he who had arranged this whole thing. He was also the one who had been keeping tabs on the shop crew.  
  
Kate suddenly realized someone was talking directly to her. "Huh?"  
  
It was Nick. "I asked if you brought a dress."  
  
"No. Why would I have?"  
  
Philip spun around in his seat. "The Luna Foundation always has a Halloween Ball. It's either costume or black tie. Rachel and Alex said you can root through their closets and we also have some costumes stored in the attic. You could take one of those."  
  
Kate smiled. "Thanks, but I'd prefer to hide in my room."  
  
"Wait a minute," Ryan interjected, "There's a serial killer on the loose and your going to let a bunch of people in the house?"  
  
"We have one of the best security systems in the world. Besides, Derek knows all of the guests personally. No one gets in without an invitation. You really have nothing to worry about."  
  
"I'm still not..."  
  
Kate placed a hand on Ryan's arm. "It's okay. I'm sure they know what they're doing."  
  
Nick pulled the car to the side of the road at the end of the clearing. "Here we are." The large, ivy covered house stood eerily against a darkening blue sky. "What do you think?"  
  
"I think it looks like something out of a horror movie."  
  
Kate chuckled.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek Rayne stood at the window and smiled. She was here. His head swam. Another vision...  
  
... A young girl with a sword...  
.... Lightning...  
... A kiss...  
... the girl falls from the roof...  
  
Derek snapped awake. He sighed. This girl was going to have rough time.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate dropped her bags and studied her new surroundings. Wood paneling, stained glass windows; the foyer was bigger than the whole shop put together. "Nice," she whispered.  
  
"For Count Dracula," Ryan replied.  
  
"Actually I think it's a little too bright in here for him."  
  
"Ms. Brannigan," a voice called from the stairs. A tall man with long salt-and-pepper hair came down to meet her. "Derek Rayne. It's a pleasure to meet you. Did you have a good flight?"  
  
"Yes, thank you." Kate shook his hand. Ryan cleared his throat. "Ah, this is my best friend and part time bodyguard, Ryan Dallion." Ryan smiled weakly.  
  
"Mr. Dallion. Well, let's get you settled in. Nick will show you to your rooms. After you've unpacked we'll meet in the dining room for a light supper." Derek bowed slightly and left the room. Ryan glanced at Kate, who just shrugged a response.  
  
"Don't mind Derek," Nick said. "He gets in these weird moods sometimes. Come on, I'll show you your rooms."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nick led Kate and Ryan down a long hall off the main staircase. "Kate, your room is right here. Ryan, we put you right across the hall. I'll come back for you in about a half hour. If you have any problems," Nick shifted his gaze at Kate and winked, "just scream."  
  
"Funny guy, ain't he?" Kate said.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Philip sipped his water. Derek had gone to grab his files on the Brannigan family.  
  
Nick strolled into the library. "Well, the kids are getting settled in. I gotta be honest, Philip. She's not exactly what I had expected. I mean, she's a little..."  
  
"Young? Naive?"  
  
"Small. If this guy is half as bad as you say he is, he'll break her in half."  
  
"You'd be surprised," Derek said as he entered the room. "They're fighters, the both of them. The Legacy has been keeping tabs on this little group for quite sometime. We were actually going to take some action against Mr. Vendredi just before he died. That's when we found out about Mr. Marshack and his little group." He tossed the file at Nick. "Makes for very interesting reading."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate scratched at the cast on her wrist as she stared out the window. Her room had a wonderful view of the ocean and the garden on the grounds below. As she slipped the sundress over her head, a tap came at the door.  
  
"Hey kid, ya decent?"  
  
"Almost. Come on in. I need a hand anyway."  
  
Ryan poked his head in the door and whistled. "Oh, sexy!"   
  
Kate turned and Ryan wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Very funny. Get over here and zip this for me."  
  
Ryan laughed to himself as he walked to her and zipped the dress. "You okay?"  
  
"Me? Yeah, fine. Why?"  
  
"You look pale."  
  
"Just tired."  
  
"Ryan clasped the small hook at the top of the zipper. "All done."  
  
Kate smiled and grabbed his hand, leading him over to the balcony. "Come here. You have to see this garden. It's amazing!" Kate and Ryan stood at the balcony rail breathing in the fresh sea air. The garden spread out below them like a carpet of flowers. They stood for a few minutes taking in the sight. The sound of a piano came drifting up from below. You could just about hear it's song over the crashing waves.  
  
Ryan finally broke the silence. "It's beautiful." Kate nodded. "You miss him, don't you?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Johnny."  
  
"A little. I mean, we really haven't gotten to spend that much time together, you know?"  
  
"You care about him an awful alot."  
  
"Yeah, I guess I do." Kate said. Ryan turned away, an odd look on his face. "What's wrong, Ryan?"  
  
"When we were in Germany the night we got the pendant back, I asked Johnny what I was like. He said that at first we didn't get along. He said he thought it was because Micki, Jack and I were a tight group and he felt like an interloper. But now, everything's changed. Micki, Jack and Johnny are the tight group. You've jumped in there and now I feel like the interloper."  
  
"Oh Ryan, that's silly."  
  
"Oh really? You're studying magic with Jack, you and Micki go antique shopping together... God knows what you and Johnny are doing."  
  
Kate frowned. "That was low."  
  
"What I mean is..."  
  
"What you mean is that I was yours first and now you don't like the idea of sharing." Kate crossed her arms. "You're acting like a little kid, you know that."  
  
"What I mean is you're my best friend and we don't get to spend any time together anymore."  
  
A smile slowly crept across Kate's face. "Oh, so I guess getting chased by 'B' movie monsters through a cursed television isn't exactly your idea of quality time." Ryan slowly smiled. Kate turned him around so he faces her. "Look, I'll give you this one ego boost, but you're almost over you limit for the month." She mockingly cleared her throat. "Ryan Dallion, you are and always will be the most important man in my life. You've made me laugh and you've kept me, relatively, safe and sane. I owe you so much and there's nothing I could ever do to repay you for that. Johnny is not replacing you. No one ever will."  
  
Ryan smiled. "I know. You could never meet another man as smart, dashing and ruggedly handsome as me ever again."   
  
"Oh brother."  
  
Someone cleared their throat from the doorway. It was Nick. "Is this a bad time?"  
  
Ryan tucked Kate's arm under his and lead her out of the room. "No, it's fine. We're just being sappy and sentimental. It's doesn't happen that often. But we're done now. Right, kid?"  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
"Right," Nick said. "Well, dinner's ready."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek opened the doors and allowed Ryan and Kate to enter. Five places were set for dinner. Derek directed Kate to the first chair to his left, Ryan was seated across from her and Nick next to her. Derek sat at the head of the table. Philip was the last to enter and took his place next to Ryan. A man in a butlers outfit started to bring trays of food in.  
  
Derek smiled. "I hope everything is to your liking."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Everyone settled into the small drawing room with coffee and tea. Derek sat at the piano and began to play a soft piece.  
  
"You play wonderfully, Doctor Rayne."  
  
"Thank you Please, call me Derek."  
  
Ryan put down his coffee. "Well, Derek, what's the plan? I mean, are we just hiding Kate or are you intending to use her as live bait."  
  
"Ryan!"  
  
"Ms. Brannigan will be under constant supervision until Mr. Garrison is caught."  
  
"How long will that be," Kate asked. "Don't get me wrong. I'm very grateful for everything you're doing for me, but I do have a life. I can't put everything on hold because of some wacko."  
  
"Well, we hope it won't be long." Derek exchanged worried glances with Nick and Philip.  
  
"And what are we supposed to do in the meantime? Nick said we couldn't leave the island."  
  
"That is true. But we have a very extensive library. Mr. Marshack had spoken of a few objects that he hadn't been able to find any research material on. He is anxious for you to see what you can find. And I understand, Mr. Dallion, that you are a bit of a painter. We have plenty of supplies around the house. And, as you've seen from your window, we have a vast amount of land and gardens. The entire house is at your disposal."  
  
Kate looked to Ryan for a reaction. He didn't look happy. The thunderstorm outside ragged.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
Maureen Gray dropped her bag onto the floor as she stepped into the bathroom stall. She was dead tired. Business was booming and she had flown cross-country twice in the past three days. Now she was on her way home to her newly-wed husband. They had both been so busy that they hadn't really spent any time together since their honeymoon. But, after this flight back to San Fransisco, they were going to be spending two weeks together in their cabin. She was so preoccupied with her vacation plans, Maureen didn't notice the man leaning over from the next stall until the noose was already tightening around her neck.  
  
Garrison smiled as he pulled the knot tighter. Maureen struggled against it, trying to hit the man away. Garrison started to laugh as he heard vertebra snap and crack under the pressure. Finally, Maureen's body went limp. Garrison laughed harder as her body went...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
... crashing to the floor. Kate's tea cup shattered as it hit the ground.  
  
Ryan was at her side instantly. "What? What's wrong?"  
  
"He killed her," she whispered.  
  
"Kate, what are you talking about? Killed who?"  
  
She closed here eyes and pressed the palms of her hands to them. "I saw it. It's just like on the plane. In my mind. I saw him kill that woman."  
  
"You're not making any sense."  
  
Philip cut him off. "What did you see?"  
  
"Garrison. He was waiting in the bathroom. That woman walked into the stall and he... he had some kind of wire or rope or something and... and he killed her." She ran her hands down her face and opened her eyes. She stared hard at Derek. "He can find me, can't he?"  
  
"Well, it's very difficult to say..."  
  
"Oh don't give me that bull! Answer me! Can he find me or not?"  
  
Derek looked her in the eye. "I know that there is a link between the two of you. But I also venture that it goes deeper than your brothers murder."  
  
"So you believe in this reincarnation crap too?"  
  
Everyone started talking all at once. Ryan was arguing with Philip, Nick was yelling at Ryan and Derek was tyring to calm everything down. Kate stood in the middle of everything looking out of place. Her head swam...  
  
... A voice on a speaker cracked into life. "US Air Flight 408 non-stop to San Fransico is now boarding at Gate 49"...  
  
... A man in front of a mirror straightening his hat. He pulls off a pair of sunglasses and stares hard into the mirror, as though he was looking through it. And he began to laugh...  
  
The laughing bounced around in Kate's head. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to will the sounds out of her head. It only got louder. She clasped her hands over her ears. "Stop it!" she screamed. Everyone in the room stopped. Kate sank slowly to her knees...  
  
... Garrison threw his head back and laughed harder, then, suddenly, he stopped. He brought his hat down and glared hard into the mirror. "You're dead." He smiled and slammed his fist into the mirror. It shattered...  
  
No!" Kate screamed. She jumped to her feet and ran out of the drawing room.   
  
"Kate!" Ryan ran after her, followed by Nick  
  
Philip glared at Derek. "She doesn't deserve this, Derek."  
  
"No one does."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate ripped open the front door and ran out into the rain. "Come on! Where are you, you son of a bitch! I'm tired of being afraid of you. I've spent half my life trying to forget about you. And for the first time in years, I'm happy. And I'm not going tot let you ruin it, you psycho bastard!"  
  
Ryan ran up behind her and spun her around. "What the hell are you doing?"  
  
"I'm tired! I'm tired of running and hiding! I can't do this forever. I can't keep looking over my shoulder for the rest of my life wondering if some nut is going to come out and get me. I want to be able to have a normal life someday."  
  
"Well, you're not going to get it standing out here in the rain screaming at the sky like a..."  
  
"A nut? A psycho? A lunatic? I'm not crazy, Ryan!" You could hardly differentiate her tears form the rain drops, but you could tell she was crying. All the rage left her and she crumbled. "I'm not crazy," she whispered.  
  
Ryan took her gently into his arms. "I know you're not crazy. Come on. Let's go in the house before you catch pneumonia." Ryan led her to the door.  
  
Nick was walking up to them. "She okay?"  
  
"No."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Johnny paced up and down along his bedroom. He couldn't sleep. The two women from the Legacy had come to pick them up. A shrink named Rachel and a, what he had been told, psychic named Alex. Rachel was nice enough, but Alex gave him the creeps. The minute they got in the 'Chicago' house, as they called it, each of them had gone their separate ways. Jack was busy drooling in the library and Micki had gone to sleep. Johnny had gone for a walk around the grounds.   
  
He was trying not to think, not about Ryan, not about Kate, not about what she was going through, not about this whole Legacy thing. All his trying not to think just made him think more. But he wasn't paying much attention to his surroundings and completely missed the small fishpond in front of him. Both he and the fish had survived unharmed. However, he did receive a number of nasty looks from the butler as he tracked water and algae in the house. Two hours and a fresh pair of socks later, he was still worried.  
  
There was a light tap on the door and female head poked in. "Hi." It was Alex. "Well, we're getting up the link to the San Fransisco house. It's going to take a little while though. They're having a pretty bad storm."  
  
"Thanks. I just want to make sure everything's okay."  
  
Alex smiled. "So how long have you and Kate been dating?"  
  
"How did..." He trailed off. "Oh, I forgot. You're psychic."  
  
"That has nothing to do with being psychic. It's just how you talk about her and your manner."  
  
Johnny smiled. "Well, you can't really say we're dating. I mean, we haven't even had one yet."  
  
"How did you two meet?"  
  
"Ah, what a loaded question. Okay, simple version; She's Ryan's best friend. After his mom died, he came looking for family and Micki's all he has left. Kate drove him from Philadelphia to Chicago and then decided to stay for awhile to make sure he got settled in. Then there was a fire at her parents store and they were both killed. She decide to stay permanently."  
  
"And that's the simple version?"  
  
"Oh yes. Believe me, I could get much more into detail but it's take a few years to explain."  
  
"Very interesting." An uncomfortable silence fell between them. "So Johnny," Alex continued, "what do you want out of life."  
  
"Something unexplainably normal to happen every once and awhile."  
  
"Pardon?"  
  
"Nevermind."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate stared into space as Ryan re fastened the air cast. "There we go. All dry. Feel better?"  
  
"No." Kate stood and began to walk to the window.  
  
"Kate, knock it off. You're making me nervous."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Are you even listening to me?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
A fast tap came at the door. Nick stuck his head in. "We got a hold of your friends. They wanna talk to you."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Micki, Johnny and Jack's slightly fuzzy images were up on the vid-link. Nick opened the hologram to let Kate and Ryan into the control room. Derek and Philip were already waiting. Derek pulled out a chair for Kate. As she sat down, a pain shot through her head. She slumped slightly and covered her eyes, begging the pain to go away. "Kate, are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah. Just a headache."  
  
Ryan jumped into the seat next to her as Alex began talking. "Okay, we have Michael and Gregory from the Chicago house at the shop itself. They'll be on the lookout for Garrison there. The house has been secured, no one in or out."  
  
Nick pulled some files up on his small screen. "We got this in about five minutes ago from the Philly PD." He motioned to Derek to take a look at it.  
  
After Derek had read the information on the screen, he looked over at Kate. "Incredible."  
  
"The woman at the airport?" Kate asked, her head still buried in her hands.  
  
Nick continued. "Maureen Gray. Found..."  
  
"Dead in the bathroom at the airport and she had been strangled."  
  
"Right."  
  
Jack's voice crackled over the screen. "How did you know that?"  
  
"I saw it, Jack."  
  
"Whoa," Johnny interrupted. "Saw it how?"  
  
"It must be part of the link she and Garrison share," Derek said.  
  
Philip nodded. "It could be one of the ways he uses to attack her."  
  
Ryan snorted. "Does he really need more than one?"  
  
"Well," Derek continued, " it depends on how strong her will is as well as his own."  
  
Kate slammed her fist onto the desk in front of her, scaring everyone. "Could you all please stop talking about me as if I wasn't here!" She winced again as the pain in her head increased. "I need to get out of here. I'm going to lay down." She slowly rose to her feet.  
  
Ryan stood. "I'll walk you up."  
  
The connection on the vid-link started to turn to static. "Alex?"  
  
"...erk? We'll have... ut it short. The ...m's get....rse."  
  
"We'll try back later, Alex." Derek sat down as the screen went dead. "I'm going to stay up and do some reading. Why don't the four of you get some sleep?"  
  
Kate turned and headed out, the boys behind her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate started up the stairs, Nick and Ryan conversing softly behind her. Suddenly something tore though her body. She fell to her knees, gasping for air.  
  
"Kate!"  
  
A voice echoed though her head. It sounded almost like her own. 'I must speak to Derek Rayne. Please.' Kate stifled a groan and rose to her feet. "No," she whispered.  
  
"What is it?" Ryan grabbed her arm. "Damn it, answer me!"  
  
Another spasm ripped though her, this time making her scream.  
  
"Derek!" Nick screamed.  
  
The voice returned. 'Please, let me in. I must speak with them, make them understand.' "It hurts."  
  
Derek and Philip joined them on the stairs.  
  
'If I don't speak to him, Garrison will kill us all. Please.' Stubborn and persistent, Kate thought. You must be related to me. "Okay."  
  
"Okay?! Okay what?" Ryan pleaded.  
  
Kate's body tensed, then went limp. Ryan went to shake her, but Nick stopped him. As Ryan leaned over to check her pulse, Kate's eyes snapped over, scaring Ryan in the process.  
  
She blinked a few times and looked around. "Derek Rayne?" Kate's voice had changed. It was deeper and an Irish accent. Even her stature had changed.  
  
Derek nodded. "Heather?"  
  
She bowed her head slightly. "Please, I must speak with you."  
  
Derek held out his hand and helped her to her feet, then led her to the drawing room with Philip close behind. Ryan stood, brushing himself off.  
  
Nick smiled. "You're best friend is possessed. And you don't seem the least bit surprised."  
  
"Not really. After you get possessed a few times, the shock value wears off."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate's body sat rigidly on the edge of the chair, the four men surrounding her. "You know who I am? And my tale?"  
  
"In a way," Derek said. "But it would help us more to hear it from you."  
  
"I was born in the year of Our Lord thirteen hundred and seventy-eight. My parent's died soon after, taken by the Black Death. I was found and raised by Osric, the village elder. He taught me to read and write, but also schooled me in the ways of magic. When I came of age, I was betrothed to Joseph." She laughed. "Of course, Matthew was not too pleased." She looked over at Ryan, a sad look crossing her face. "You look so like him."  
  
Ryan glanced at Derek. "I do?"  
  
"Well, seeing as how both Kate and Garrison resemble their counterparts, it would follow that friends of theirs might also resemble others."  
  
"It does seem to fit with present reincarnation theory." Philip agreed.  
  
Nick leaned forward. "That means that he's tied up in all this too?"  
  
Ryan sighed. "Well, my luck holds true to form."  
  
Kate/Heather fixed him with a hard stare. "You've been luckier than most, Ryan."  
  
"Sorry, Kate.. uh, Heather."  
  
She smiled at his slip and continued. "Matthew and I were harvesting one day when Lord Nathaniel came riding by looking for a servant who had fled his castle." You could almost hear the contempt in her voice. "He told me.. ordered me to marry him. When I told him I was already promised to someone, he asked his name so that he could give him his well wishes." Kate/Heather's face crumpled for an instant. "Foolishly I told him." Tears started to well up in her eyes. "Matthew and I returned a few hour later to find everyone in our village dead, their throats slashed. Lord Nathaniel had all my belonging packed into a wagon and ordered his men to bring me to his castle upon my return. Matthew alone was spared, so that he would be my servant. When I got there I was taken to a small chapel where I was forced to marry him. Then he... he..." Kate/Heather broke down and sobbed.  
  
Ryan took her hand and squeezed it. "It's okay. We understand."  
  
Kate/Heather wrapped her hand over his and smiled. "Well, it was well know that he was a practitioner of the black arts. At the time of his death he was trying to call the Old One to earth."  
  
"Old One?" Ryan asked.  
  
"Lucifer," Derek explained.  
  
"Yes. And I tried to stop him."  
  
Nick nodded. "By sacrificing your own life."  
  
"Yes, and much more." She sighed and rubbed her forehead. "She's tired. I must go." Kate/Heather stood shakily. Ryan grabbed her arm. She smiled up at him. "You are in for a trying time as well, Ryan. Thank you." She then collapsed into Ryan's arms.  
  
"Kate?"  
  
She groaned. "Oh, my head..."   
  
"Ryan, perhaps you should take her upstairs."  
  
"Kate, can you walk?" She shivered and shook her head. Her teeth began to chatter. Ryan gently scooped her up into his arms and started upstairs.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate shivered all the way up to her room. Ryan nudged the door open with his foot and headed over to the bed. "Are you sure you're gonna..."  
  
"If someone asks me if I am or if I'm going to be okay, I'll kill them."  
  
"Okay. Look, I'll be right across the hall if you need me. Try and sleep."  
  
"Fine." Kate padded into the bathroom as Ryan closed the door. As he stepped into his own room, the temperature plunged. A mist hung around the windows. A soft voice drifted though the room. It sounded almost like a child. As Ryan stared out the window, a face started to form. Ryan jumped back as the face smiled, then disappeared. "Jamie?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate sighed as the water ran hot over her shoulders. She was still shivering after Heather's visit. It was odd. It was like something out of 'Being John Malkevich', She could see out of her own eyes but she couldn't control what was being said. She kept running the conversation over and over in her head. Something she had said had bothered her. It was when Nick has said something about her sacrificing her life. She said, 'Yes and much more'. Something about that bothered Kate. As she stepped out of the shower, her head swam...  
  
... "We will be arriving in San Francisco in approximately one hour." A man was sticking hat pins into a teddy bear, laughing...  
  
Kate slid across the bathroom floor. "God, please help me." She brought herself to her feet and ran to her suitcase. Throwing it open, she tore though the clothes until her hands brushed a stuffed animal. It was Mortimer, Jamie's bear. Micki had packed him with her clothes. But how could she have known? The only ones who knew were Johnny and... Ryan. He must have told her to pack him. Kate sighed as she squeezed the toy.  
  
"He loves you, you know."  
  
Kate glanced around the room looking for the voice. A mist was forming in the corner. Kate threw down the bear and grabbed her robe. As she wrapped it around her shoulder and ran for the door, the mist took form.  
  
"It's just me, Katie."  
  
Kate spun to face it. "Oh my... Jamie?"  
  
He looked exactly the same, eternally eight years old, standing in his cowboy costume he had worn that Halloween. "Ryan. He loves you. He would never say it though." Kate fell to her knees, leaning heavily on the door. "It's okay Katie. It's me." He walked to her and kneeled down in front of her.  
  
"Oh Jamie.. I'm so sorry."  
  
"Why? There's no reason for you to be. Just make sure you get him tomorrow." Jamie smiled and disappeared.  
  
Kate took a few breaths to calm herself, then jumped to her feet and ran from the room.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan awoke to a pounding on his door. "Ryan! Let me in!" Ryan jumped out of bed and threw open the bedroom door. Kate burst in and slammed the door shut. "Can I sleep in here with you?"  
  
Ryan sputtered for a moment. "Uh, yeah. What happened?"  
  
She crawled into bed and pulled the covers up to her chin. "I just saw Jamie."  
  
Ryan dropped the pillow in his hand. "You saw... your brother Jamie?" Kate nodded. "Wow. I just... I mean.. A little while ago, I thought I saw his face at my window. Are you sure..."  
  
"Yeah, it was him. Same condescending 'I'm eight and I know everything' voice." Kate laughed. Ryan smiled as he dropped into a nearby chair. "What are you doing?"  
  
"Going to sleep?"  
  
"You're gonna wake up with an stiff back sleeping in that chair all night. Just stay up here with me."  
  
"Ah..."  
  
Kate smirked. "Since when are you so bashful. We did it all the time as kids."  
  
"Nah, that's okay. I'm fine."  
  
Kate shrugged and lay down. "Don't complain tomorrow about your sore back."  
  
Ryan sighed and threw the pillow at her. "Fine. Move over." Kate moved over to the left side of the bed. "Do you still snore?"  
  
"Do you still have ice cubes for feet?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Johnny sighed as he turned over again. He couldn't get to sleep. He just kept staring at the empty half of his bead, thinking that something was missing. He couldn't figure out why. He and Kate didn't sleep together. Hell, they'd barely done anything together. They never had a chance to be alone. Maybe after all this died down... Maybe...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Garrison stepped off the plane smiling. He looked at his watch. Today was the day...  
  
October 31...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan slowly woke up. The air around him a strange scent, like raspberry and ... Styrofoam? Ryan opened his eyes. Kate was curled up beside him, her casted hand lying on his chest. He gently took her hand and slid out from beneath it. Kate sighed and turned over, still asleep. Ryan slipped quietly into a pair of jeans and went down stairs.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan walked, yawning, into the kitchen. "Morning."  
  
Derek smiled up from a folder of papers he was reading. "Good afternoon."  
  
"Afternoon?"  
  
"It's three o-clock, Mr. Dallion. You've both had a ruff few days, so we decided to let you both sleep."   
  
Ryan nodded and sat down in front of Derek. "Okay. Since Kate's not here, how 'bout you tell me what you're trying to hide from her?"  
  
"I don't know what your talking about Mr. Dallion."  
  
Ryan grabbed the folder from Derek and threw it across the room, papers flying everywhere. "What are you not telling her."  
  
Derek sighed. "Very well..."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate walked slowly around the stone turret. She knew she was still asleep, but she was trying to enjoy the quiet. Heather slowly appeared before her. "So much for quiet."  
  
Heather smiled. "It never lasts long. How are you feeling?"  
  
"Oh, I've been better." She looked over her counterpart. It was eerie, almost like looking in a carnival mirror. She was the same, but yet complete different at the same time. Heather stood staring over the balcony at the countryside beneath her, her hands clasped over her stomach. Kate cleared her throat. "So did Nathaniel know you were pregnant when he killed you?"  
  
Heather's head whipped around. "How did..."  
  
"Nick. When he asked you about sacrificing your life, you said something about having lost much more. Then you grabbed your stomach. You were pregnant. You didn't want to tell him because you were afraid of what the child would grow up like. But you still haven't forgiven yourself for killing an innocent child." She took Heather's hand. "You did what you had to save the world from his evil. God's forgiven you. You should be resting now."  
  
Heather blinked away her tears. "And I shall... when he is burning in hell."  
  
  
~~**~~  
  
Kate awoke suddenly to the sound of raised voices. One of them was definatly Ryan's. She slipped her robe around her shoulders and headed for the argument.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
Kate crept along the hall until she reached the voices.  
  
"...time to get around to telling her this?" That was Ryan's voice, probably yelling at them for not doing something right.  
  
"Okay, when would you suggest we tell her?" Nick screamed. "I mean, how do you tell someone that you either kill someone or your dead!"  
  
Kate blanched. Please don't let them be talking about me.  
  
Derek's voice came next. "We were hoping to have time to prepare her."  
  
"Who do you prepare someone for a kill or be killed situation! If Kate doesn't kill Garrison, she's dead. And there's no way around it. One way or another, one of them has to die."  
  
Kate leaned on the wall, her knees turning to jelly beneath her. Kill? No one said anything about killing anyone.  
  
Someone's chair scrapped across the floor. "I'm going to talk to her." Ryan came around the kitchen door and saw Kate in the hallway. "Kate..."  
  
Kate held up her hand and turned her back to him. "I... I need to go for a walk."  
  
"I'll come with you."  
  
"Just leave me alone for once, for God's sake!" she screamed, then ran upstairs to her room.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Johnny paced again. Jack's nose was still buried in a book, Micki just watching the both of them at their verbal tennis match.  
  
"I still don't trust these guys," Johnny said.  
  
"Johnny, they've dealt with things of this nature for centuries. We can hardly tell them their jobs." Jack turned another page.  
  
"Then why won't they at least tell us something. Anything! Did they catch him, do they know where he is..."  
  
"Johnny, you're beginning to sound like a broken record. Just sit down and take a deep breath. As soon as they find out anything, we'll know."  
  
Johnny opened his mouth to argue. Not able to find the right thing to say, he simply stormed out of the room.  
  
"Pass the tea will you, Micki?"  
  
"You're taking this awful light aren't you, Jack?"  
  
"Oh no Micki. I'm just as worried as Johnny is. But, at my age, if I were to pace that much I might have an aneurysm. I prefer a quiet panic."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate threw another seed into the small fountain at the center of the garden. She knew all along. She knew someone was going to die here. She supposed that was due to Heather's influence. She even expected it might be her. It's just that actually hearing someone say out loud what was in her mind scared her.   
  
She let her hand float. "Jump." The seeds she had tossed into the pool jumped out and landed once again in her lap. She smirked. Neat little trick for doing the dishes, she thought. She did the trick a few more times using different objects, but she kept returning to the thought of death.  
  
The thought of dying isn't a pleasant one... especially if you've already died once before. Everyone with the exception of Jack had been dead once. Micki had died by the hand of a taxidermist named Sylvan. He had one of Lewis's objects, the coin of Zioclese. That was also what brought her back to life later on. Ryan had been stabbed by Asteroph while in France. Johnny had been stabbed by a hillbilly named Mike Negly, then transferred his soul into Negly's body with another of Lewis's antiques. The yin yang had also brought him back to life as well. Kate laughed hoarsely. Hell, maybe the Legacy had something stored in their basement that could bring her back again. She lifted a piece of brick out of the water when someone grabbed her shoulder. Instinctivly she directed the brick at her assailant. She heard the crack as it hit it's target.  
  
"Ow!"  
  
Kate spun around. Nick was rubbing an egg sized lump on his shin. "You scared me."  
  
"Neat little trick. You'll have to teach me." He tried to make her laugh, but was rewarded with barely a glance. "I just wanted to see if you were hungry." Nick sat down next to her.  
  
"Not really. My stomach's busy doing flip flops around my throat."  
  
"A bit surprising, huh?"  
  
"You make it sound like this is an everyday occurrence..." Kate stopped herself and started to laugh. "I sound like the people we talk to. 'You hunt cursed objects? How odd.' So, how weird does it get around here on a daily basis?"  
  
"Oh, the usual; Devil tries to ascend to earth, demons possess people, evil witches fight the good ones to shift the balance of power."  
  
"Geez, we should from a support group." She laid her hand on Nick's. Her head snapped back...  
  
... Nick running through a field of mud, rain pouring all around him  
... falling to his knees before a scarecrow in a field  
... "Julia!"  
  
Kate tore her hand away.   
  
"What did you see?"  
  
"You in a field and someone on a scarecrow's perch."  
  
A sad look quickly crossed Nick's face. "Julia. She... was a member of the Legacy. It's a long story. You know, Derek can do that to. He has visions. Maybe you could talk to him about it."  
  
"Well, I'm praying that once this is all over, it'll go away. I don't think I could live with this all my life."  
  
Nick nodded. "Come on. We need to get you ready for tonight."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan tore the bow tie from his neck again. Why couldn't they have had a clip on? A tap came at his door. "Come on in."  
  
Kate walked in and closed the door behind her. "What'd ya think?" She was in a floor-length sleevless ice blue dress, her short blond hair curled and piled delicately on top of her head, and a thin shawl threaded between her arms.   
  
Ryan flashed her a smile which quickly faded. "How are you going to run from a psycho killer in that get up?"  
  
She lifted the hem of her dress to reveal a pair of boots underneath. "I'm a very practical person. Need a hand with your tie?" Ryan nodded. She handed her shawl to him.   
  
"I won't ask you how you're doing."  
  
"Thank you. Stop fidgeting. It'll be crooked." Kate looped the tie around one last time and pulled tight. "There. You clean up nice."  
  
"Your shawl, Madame." Ryan dropped the cloth across Kate's shoulders, his hands resting on them. "You know..." He stopped.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Nothing. Nevermind." Then he smiled and held out his hand. "Well," he said doing a mock British accent, "shall we mingle with the socialites?"  
  
"Oh yes, by all means." She took his hand.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Captain Robert Porter never felt the knife slash his throat as his body tumbled into the lake. Garrison wiped it off callously on the boat sail and started up the engine. Just across this lake and he would be at Angel Island, the home of the Legacy. He could hear Nathaniel in his mind. 'Let me take over completely now.' Garrison laughed as his mind clouded, dragged into visions of fire and death.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek waved as the last of the guests left the house.   
  
Nick was behind him staring at his watch. "It's eleven thirty, Derek. Maybe he isn't coming after all."  
  
"No Nick, he's coming. It's just a matter of time."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Philip walked into he library. "Kate?"  
  
She was standing the window overlooking the bay. "No, Father."  
  
"Heather."  
  
Kate turned to him, her eyes clouded. "He is coming. Please Father, I have something to ask of you."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Will... will you hear my confession?"  
  
Philip walked to her. "But what could you have to confess?"  
  
"Please Father. Kate trusts you, so I know that I can as well."  
  
"Very well." Philip blessed himself, Heather following the action.  
  
"Father, forgive me, for I have sinned. I... took the life of my own child. I could find no other recourse in order to stop Nathaniel, but still, I have destroyed His creation. Please, forgive me."  
  
"Heather, you scarified your life to save the world from the powers of the devil. You were placed there for a reason, and God knows that. And I absolve you of your sins in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. And may your soul rest in peace, Heather."  
  
She looked up at him with tear filled eyes. "Thank you."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Garrison/Nathaniel stepped off the boat laughing. He raised his hands to the sky and screamed. "It begins!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate/Heather's head snapped up. "He's here."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nathaniel grabbed a hand full of dirt and threw it into the wind. "Geb, rain your laughter upon the world. Let it quake beneath me!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek and Nick ran into the library. Suddenly the house shifted; books rattled off shelves, pictures fell from the walls. "Earthquake!"  
  
Heather tried to get to her feet. "Brigid, protect those in this house from the evils outside."  
  
The house slowly began to calm itself.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nathaniel cursed. Again, he raised his hands to the air. "Re, the light!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A light next to Derek exploded. All around the house, all things electrical shorted out. Soon, there was no light in the house at all.  
  
Nick ran in. "Everything's down! The fences are out and the cameras aren't working. We can't see where's he coming from!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Thor, your mighty hammer is called for. Leza, bring thy waters to this place!"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Thunder cracked across the sky. The clouds opened and rain plummeted to earth with ferocity.  
  
Heather clasped her hands together. "Dagda, help your children here. Send your messengers to me."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Nathaniel reached the door of the house. He pushed his hand to it. The door exploded inward with a shower of fire and wood.  
  
Derek struggled to his feet. "He have to get you upstairs, Heather!" He grabbed her hand and lead her out.  
  
Nick pulled a small gun from his belt, Philip reached for his casic and a bottle of holy water. Nick smirked. "Let's see who's works better."  
  
"Neither at the moment. I can't see a thing."  
  
A spot of light appeared at Nick's shoulder. A group slowly followed behind. Philip laughed. "I should have know."  
  
"What the hell are you talking about? What are they?"  
  
"Heather. She called for Dagda's messengers." At Nick's confused look, he continued. "Fairies."  
  
"Why not?" Nick said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek stopped in the kitchen hallway. "Wait here. I'll get you what you need."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Wood crunched under Nathaniel's boot as he entered the library. Philip stood first, brandishing the bottle of holy water. "This place is protected by God."  
  
Nathaniel laughed. "And what care I for your God?" He swept his hand through the air. An invisible force threw Philip back. His head connected with the bookcase with a sickening crunch.  
  
"Philip!" Nick jumped up, gun in hand.  
  
Nathaniel laughed. "A modern toy. How quaint." With one motion of his hands, the gun was ripped from Nick's hands. Then he rushed forward and wrapped his hand around Nick's throat. Nick struck out with his hands, raking them across Nathaniel's face. He dropped Nick quickly. Nick crawled to where Nathaniel had throw his gun. He turned and fired. Nathaniel spun as the bullet came to him.  
  
"Not a bad shot," Nathaniel said as he turned back. He was holding the bullet in his hand. A twitch of his fingers and the bullet was afloat in the air. Nick slowly backed away. Nathaniel smiled and twitched his hands again. The bullet flew with enormous speed right at Nick and caught him in the shoulder. Nick's body spun with the moment with which the bullet hit him, the crashed to the floor. Satisfied with his work, Nathaniel made his way upstairs.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan paced around the room. It's part of the plan, his mind kept telling him. But another part of his mind kept saying, 'Why aren't you down there with her?' Finally, after having enough of both sides arguing with each other, Ryan threw open his door.   
  
Nathaniel stood there, ready to greet him. "Matthew..."  
  
"Oh sh..."  
  
Nathaniel punched him, knocking him out and dragged his body to the hall.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Derek returned to Heather, a large sword in his hand. "The only way to stop him is to take his head."  
  
Heather nodded and took the sword.  
  
"Heather! Where are you!" Nathaniel's voice echoed along the halls. "I have your man again. He looks just the same, don't you agree?"  
  
"Ryan!"  
  
Heather and Derek ran to the main hall. Nathaniel had Ryan's unconscious body in his arms, a wicked looking sword lying across his throat.  
  
"He is not part of this, Nathaniel. Let him be."  
  
"He is merely... insurance, I believe the phrase is. The tower of this house. We shall finish this." He shifted Ryan's weight to his side and made his way upstairs. Derek started to follow.  
  
"No Derek. See to your friends. I hope we shall meet again." Heather tightened her grip on her sword and ran up the stairs. "Come, little ones," she called behind her.  
  
Derek stared wide eyed as a small cluster of light pinpricks followed her up the stairs.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Heather slowly stepped out onto the stone turret. The rain still fell hard from the sky above, thunder and lightning rattled from the heavens.  
  
"There's my lovely bride. Boy," he kicked Ryan's side, "Isn't she lovely?"  
  
Ryan/Matthew groaned. "Get out of here, Heather!" Matthew struggled to get to his feet.  
  
Nathaniel kicked him again. "No, we mustn't have you helping." He raised his sword high and thrust it deep into Matthew's thigh. He screamed and clutched at the wound, trying to stop the flow of blood.  
  
"No!" Heather jumped at him, her sword raised high. Their swords met with a spark. Nathaniel laughed as Heather advanced on him. Thrust after thrust went matched. Heather faked left and caught Nathaniel's arm. He yelled as the blade sliced into his flesh. He raised a hand to it, blood dripping from his fingers. Then he brought them to his mouth. He smiled at her through blood coated teeth and advanced.   
  
Heather matched his blows. He moved on her like an animal, rage blazing in his eyes. He sliced through the air again. Heather ducked and rolled away. Nathaniel jumped on her as she righted herself, slashing her across the back. She fell to her knees in a corner of the turret. Nathaniel stalked towards her. "Little ones, help!" she screamed.  
  
The turret was suddenly alight. Dagda's fairies came to her, swooping past Nathaniel knocking him off balance. He swung his sword at them. Heather got to her feet, Nathaniel backing towards her. As Heather moved out of his path, his large arm grabbed hers. With a scream her tossed her with all his might at the corner of the turret. The momentum sent her flying over the edge.   
  
Matthew saw her hands desperately looking for something to hang on to, but soon they disappeared. "Heather!"  
  
Nathaniel, laughing made his way over.   
  
Matthew leaned down and removed the dagger that Derek had instructed him to hide in his boot earlier that day. 'Just in case someone else decided to appear', he had said. Matthew summoned all the rage inside him and dove at Nathaniel, screaming like a man possessed. Nathaniel turned just in time to give Matthew the perfect target. He plunged the dagger deep into Nathaniel's heart. His sword clattered to the ground, leaning on the turret wall.  
  
Matthew twisted the knife, begging it to go deeper as the image of Heather plummeting off the wall played over in his mind. "Die, you bastard!"  
  
Nathaniel punched Matthew, sending him reeling. Wrapping his hand slowly over the knife, he laughed. "You can't kill me, boy! You weren't meant to!" He pulled the knife out of his chest, dripping blood and bone. Then he slashed out, catching Matthew across the chest. As Matthew fell to the ground, Nathaniel raised the dagger high.  
  
"Burn in hell, you monster."  
  
Nathaniel turned to the sound of the voice behind him. Heather stood on the turret ledge, Nathaniel's sword in her hand. Before he could move, Heather struck out catching Nathaniel across the throat. A sickening WHUMP filed the air as Nathaniel head was sliced from his shoulders. As it hit the ground, the body twitched for a second. Then it crumbled.  
  
Derek ran through the turret door, Nick close behind holding his shoulder wound. Heather eased herself off the turret, favoring her right leg. She leaned down to Ryan's body and smiled at it's inhabitant. "When did you get here, Matthew?"  
  
"Soon after the party began to break up. Derek noticed it."  
  
Heather buried her head in Matthew's shoulder. "I missed you."  
  
"And I you, My Lady."  
  
Derek stepped forward. "There is a place for you, Heather. You can rest now."  
  
Heather looked at again at her friend. "I would like that." She looked to Derek and Nick. "Thank you for all that you've done. And please tell Kate and Ryan thank for us as well."   
  
Matthew placed his hands along Heather's cheeks. "Come, My Lady, let us go home." He leaned forward and kissed her with an unbound passion. A white light filled the air as the two continued their embrace. A blue and purple light erupted and shot off into the heavens. Then rain and thunder stopped as suddenly as they started.  
  
Kate and Ryan were still locked in Heather and Matthew's embrace. Ryan pulled away. Kate blinked and passed out. Ryan followed.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
November 1  
  
Kate heard voices, but didn't want to put faces to them. Her head hurt, her back hurt... She stopped herself. I'm sure the list would be much shorter if I listed what didn't hurt. Her mind went into overtime to find a spot on her body that didn't ache in one way or another. It gave up. She slowly opened her eyes.  
  
"Hey," a female voice said. Micki was sitting on her bed, smiling at her.  
  
"Micki?" her voice croaked. Images of last night flashed through her head and she tried to sit up. "Is everyone okay?" Her stomach leaped as the room spun. "Uh, I think I'm gonna puke." She laid back down again.  
  
Micki handed her a glass of water. "Try not to move too much. Everyone's fine."  
  
"Fine?" she glanced at Micki.  
  
"Well, okay. Fine's not exactly the best term. They're all alive and healing. Father Callahan's got a nasty bump on the head. Nick's got a few stitches, the bullet just grazed him. Ryan's got some stitches and he's gonna be on crutches for a few weeks. You've got a nasty cut along your back, but it didn't need stitches. Your hands are cut up from grabbing the ivy on the turret when you fell and a nice soccer ball sized black and blue mark from when you hit the side."  
  
"Where's everyone else?"  
  
"Well, Jack's having an orgasm over the size and stock of the library..."  
  
"Oh, mental image. Thanks alot, Micki." Kate grimaced.  
  
"And Johnny's in with Ryan now. I'll send him in."  
  
"Thanks Micki." As Micki closed the door, Kate let her eyes close.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Ryan opened his eyes as someone else entered the room. Micki flashed him a quick smile. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Like someone raked a cheese grater over my chest. Is Kate awake yet?"  
  
"Yeah. Few minutes ago. She asked about you."  
  
"Oh. Is Johnny in there now?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kate sighed. Someone else was in the room now.   
  
"Kate?" Johnny whispered.  
  
She opened her eyes and smiled. "Johnny..."  
  
Johnny lowered himself on the bed and wrapped his arm around her. She gasped as his hand hit the cut on her back. "Oh God, I'm sorry."  
  
"It's okay. It's just a flesh wound." She tried to smile.  
  
"I was so worried." He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I had this weird dream..."  
  
"Don't tell me. I've had enough weird dreams to last me a lifetime." Kate's eyes slowly started to close. Johnny started to get up. "No. Can you... can you stay here with me? At least until I fall asleep?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
November 2  
  
Ryan groaned as he sat down next to Kate. Rachel insisted that they both get outside. The air would do them good. "You gonna do that neat rock trick?"  
  
"What rock trick?"  
  
"The one you showed Nick."  
  
She laughed as she recalled the look on Nick's face after being hit with a brick piece. "No. I think I've had enough magic. From now on, Jack's our magic man. I'm through."  
  
They sat in silence for awhile, taking in the quiet around them. Ryan finally turned to her. "So, that thing on the roof... Does that change us any?" Kate began to say something, but closed her mouth. "I mean, I still feel the same. I mean, you Kate. Me Ryan. We best friends, partner's in crime and inseparable team. But, does that put us somewhere else?"  
  
"I don't know. I don't feel any different. Like you said, you Ryan. Me Kate." Again the silence fell between. This time Kate broke it. "Chalk it up to possession?"  
  
"Deal."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
November 3  
  
Kate finished buckling her suitcase. Everyone was already outside getting ready for the flight back to Chicago.   
  
Derek tapped on the door. "Are you sure you have everything?"  
  
"Yeah. Listen, thanks again, Derek. I don't know how we'll ever be able to pay you back."  
  
"I have a thought." He sat down on the bed and picked up Mortimer. "Just keep this in the back of your mind. Your gifts, the visions I mean. They may have been just something that Heather brought to you as a way to help you in your fight against her husband. But, if they continue, please let me know. You have shown a great strength for the work you do with Mr. Marshack. I would like you to consider joining the Legacy. Not right at this moment, of course. I understand that you have other responsibilities. But, just keep it in the back of your mind."  
  
Kate nodded and thought for a moment. "Derek, I don't want to keep doing these sort of thing all my life. But should we, God willing, actually get everything back... I'll consider it."  
  
Derek smiled. "That's all I ask."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Micki settled back in her seat with the newest V.C. Andrews novel, Jack had his face buried in a folder of papers Derek had printed up for him. He had mumbled something about legends and some of the objects, then engulfed himself completely in them. A soft sigh made Micki turn around and check on her other companions.   
  
Johnny was fast asleep with Kate's head resting comfortably on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. Ryan was nodding off as well, his hand clasped around Kate's.   
  
Micki gently nudged Jack and pointed back to them. After taking in the sight, he turned around with a smile on his face. "Love show's itself in many different ways."  
  
_________________________________theend_________________________________  
  
Bebop, thanks for showing me what an 'Imagination' is. I miss you.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
